Thousands of fans flocked to Kermit Tipton Stadium to watch the Buccaneers play their first Blue and Gold spring game in 12 years in April.

Return of ETSU football makes positive financial impact

Friday, August 14, 2015

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Aug. 14, 2015) – As ETSU football continues to prepare for the start of the 2015 season, the sheer number of players and the flurry of activity surrounding the program have served as a reminder of the impact the program’s return is having on the campus of ETSU and throughout the region.

“There is obviously a significant positive financial impact when talking about the return of football and the marching band,” said ETSU Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Richard Sander. “Specifically, there is a major economic effect thanks to enrollment increases that come from an estimated 400 additional students, especially when you count both the team and the band.

“That influence is also felt throughout the local economy as players, parents, fans and alumni will be traveling to Johnson City for football weekends. In particular, hotels and restaurants throughout our region will see an immediate impact on football weekends.”

In fact, when looking at general economic impact for the region, an ETSU College of Business research study found that an ETSU student’s overall economic impact averaged at around $55,000 a year. This means in terms of just the return of football and the band at ETSU – not to mention ancillary fulltime, part time and graduate assistants that have been added – the overall economic impact of football exceeds well over $22 million a year.

ETSU football players by themselves provided the following incremental revenue on campus in 2014-15, and this same group is projected to generate even more dollars in 2015-16:

2014-15 2015-16 *

Tuition and Fees $1,101,318 $1,736,400

On-campus housing $510,000 $612,000

On-campus meals $330,000 $400,000

* -- projected

In addition to those basic numbers, ETSU fund raising and ticket sales have also exponentially increased over the last two years, as indicated by the following statistics:

During the 2013-14 season, gifts to the Buccaneer Athletic Scholarship Association equaled a total of $217,227. In 2014-15, the total raised by the Excellence Fund (formerly known as BASA) equaled $459,973. This is an increase of nearly $243,000.

In terms of number of contributors to the Excellence Fund, there were 700 people giving to the program in 2013-14. That number has increased to currently 1,400.

The support for football tickets has been impressive. ETSU ticket sales for the upcoming football season have totaled over $353,000 to this point even though that number continues to grow daily. In comparison, the total revenue from football ticket sales during the 2001, 2002 and 2003 seasons was a combined $288,425.

For more on ETSU football throughout the 2015 season, visit ETSUBucs.com.